Canadian officials have accused a Toronto-area used car dealer of laundering money for the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah.
Fahed Sowane, 57, a citizen of Lebanon who came to Canada with a work permit in 2016, denies the allegations.
But in heavily redacted court records released to Global News, officials called the Mississauga, Ont., resident a “danger to Canadian security.”
A seasoned car dealer, Sowane has shipped Audi, BMW and other cars to the Hezbollah-controlled port in Beirut, the documents allege.
Immigration officials concluded that the shipment was “money laundering for the benefit of Hezbollah,” according to the files.
Because of this, the officials found that Sowane is not allowed to travel to Canada, which means that he is not allowed to stay in the country.
The Federal Court upheld the decision last week.
A former Canadian intelligence analyst specializing in terrorist financing said the export of high-end vehicles is “a well-known method of financing Hezbollah.”
To move money across borders, Hezbollah uses it to buy cars, which are shipped to Lebanon and resold, said Jessica Davis, president of Insight Threat Intelligence.
“This means that money goes from Canada to Lebanon but never touches the banking system,” said the former head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
“And this is important because banks are not well equipped to detect money laundering and terrorist financing. So this is the way criminals bypass all these protections we put in the financial system.”
Photo of Fahed Sowane in his immigration file.
District Court
The Canada Border Services Agency did not respond to questions about the matter. Sowane’s lawyer said his client was disappointed with the court’s decision.
In emails to Global News, Dan Miller said immigration officials in the case “can’t provide evidence of any behavior of concern.”
He disputed the government’s claim that Sowane sent the cars to Beirut for less than he paid for them — a flag for money laundering.
“Sowane’s frustration is made worse because the Canadian government allows hundreds of members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to live freely in Canada, which the group strongly opposes,” Miller said.
“Similarly, every weekend Hamas supporters freely gather at the intersection of Bathurst St. and Sheppard Ave. in Toronto to terrorize the local Jewish community, and the government is doing nothing to stop this.”
“Instead, the government is going after small people on trivial allegations to pretend they’re doing something, while at the same time avoiding taking anything that might upset their voters.”
Hezbollah is a “radical Shia group” dedicated to turning Lebanon into an Islamic republic like Iran, according to Public Safety Canada.
Armed, trained and financed by Tehran, it is part of the Iranian-led “axis of resistance” that also includes Hamas in Gaza and the Houthis in Yemen.
Although registered by Iran, Hezbollah also relies on drug-trafficking and other crimes for income, and it siphons off the proceeds, often through the global car trade.
Iran has encouraged its axis groups to develop other sources of funding, said Davis, author of Illicit Money: Financing Terrorism in the 21st Century.
That includes tax, fraud, investment and criminal networks, he said.
“Those are the kinds of things that provide longevity and financial means to terrorist groups, even when their supporters cut them off.”
The port of Beirut is controlled by Hezbollah, according to Canadian officials, April 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar).
In the 2022 terrorist financing alert, Canada’s Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center warned of Hezbollah’s activities.
The report said that, after ISIS, Hezbollah was the international terrorist group most often seen moving money across borders.
“A significant portion of the funds suspected of supporting Hezbollah were sent to Lebanon,” FINTRAC wrote in a warning to financial institutions.
“Funds suspected of supporting Hezbollah were often sent or received by individuals/companies that refer to the sale of automobiles or are listed in the automobile industry.”
A car dealer for over three decades, Sowane launched Black Swan Trading Inc. in Ontario in 2015, according to documents filed in Federal Court.
He also worked at M&J Canada Inc., where his duties included shipping used cars and parts to overseas markets, according to records.
The Mississauga used cars, which Sowane described in the letter as a full-time employee, did not respond to requests for comment.
Three years after Sowane came to Canada with a work permit, the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development nominated him to become an employed immigrant.
The province nominates potential immigrants who “have the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of Ontario’s economy,” according to the government’s website.
The service responsible for the program did not respond to questions.
The CSIS security assessment report on Fahed Sowane has been heavily redacted.
District Court
While federal immigration officials were processing Sowane’s application for permanent residency, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service swooped in.
After CSIS submitted a security assessment report to the CBSA in February 2024, Sowane was rejected “due to being a risk to Canadian security.”
Although immigration officials asked Sowane for records about his cars being exported, they said he did not provide them, prompting officials to say he was “withholding information.”
Swane said he does not share religious beliefs such as Hezbollah, but the CBSA said “ideologies may not be influential when it comes to personal gain.”
His lawyer told immigration officials that his client “has never met with Hezbollah and that his business activities have never had anything to do with Hezbollah.”
“Lebanese Sunnis hate Hezbollah and Mr. Sowane is no different. He blames Hezbollah for making Lebanon a failed state and says he wants nothing to do with Hezbollah,” the attorney wrote in an April 2024 email.
Swane appealed the CBSA’s decision but failed.
In a decision issued on Jan. 21, the Federal Court held that the immigration department reached its decision “in a reasonable and reasonable manner.”
Davis called it a “rare case of Hezbollah interference in Canada,” using an immigration screening system as opposed to criminal courts.
“I think it’s very important for Canadians to understand that this kind of thing is happening in this country even if we don’t see any legal action,” he said.
“There are other ways that the Canadian government disrupts financial networks. Immigration is part of that, in fact it’s very important.”
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca
